Jake Paul is not convinced that Nate Diaz will last very long in the ring.

Certainly not as long as his opponent’s prediction.

“Nate Diaz in round ten,” Diaz proclaimed when their fight was officially announced.

There’s just one problem with that guarantee.

“It’s an eight-round fight,” Paul had to remind his counterpart of their upcoming August 5 DAZN Pay-Per-View headliner at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.

The pair of iconic longtime rivals will meet at a maximum contracted weight of 185 pounds for their upcoming crossover clash. Diaz will make his boxing debut, though the celebrated mixed martial arts (MMA) athlete from Stockton, California was formally trained in boxing.

Given that, he couldn’t quite grasp why the fight should be limited to just eight rounds.

“I’ve been fighting championship rounds forever,” said Diaz, who fought in scheduled five-round championship-limit contest in five of his six final UFC fights. “This seems pretty championship material.”

Paul (6-1, 4KOs) has fought in scheduled six- and eight-round bouts since his January 2020 pro debut. Three of his last four starts have gone the eight-round distance, but the content creator and co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions (MVP)—who will co-promote the event with Diaz’s Real Fights, Inc.—was on board to accommodate any request suggested by Diaz. He even offered to have his self-created ‘MVP’ title at stake.

Diaz was fine with the suggestion, though wouldn’t commit to posing with the title should he win.

“I don’t know what to say, I ain’t wearing no belt like that,” said Diaz. “But yeah, for sure. I don’t care about belts. I just want to make sure the rounds are right.”

His adversary seemed okay with the concession.

“Whatever he wants,” noted Paul. “I’m ready, it’s not going to go that long. I think he’s gonna be sharp for a couple of rounds but there’s nothing he can do to stop me. I’m faster, I’m stronger. I’m the better boxer.

“He’s gonna be coming forward. He doesn’t have head movement. He’s trying to pressure me. He’s gonna get diced up. I see it ending in four rounds or less.”

Diaz doesn’t believe that but he did openly acknowledge the possibility of not prevailing in his first sanctioned boxing match.

“If I lose in the 9th round, that’d be f----- up,” quipped the 38-year-old Diaz. They’ll be like ‘Oh he asked for more rounds.’”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox